The Royal Baby Has a Name: His Royal Highness Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge

Kensington Palace has just announced that the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have named their firstborn son — and third in line to the British throne — George Alexander Louis. The child’s official title will be His Royal Highness Prince George Alexander Louis of Cambridge, but will most likely be known as Prince George.

While there’s been no official word on how the name was chosen — indeed, just yesterday the Duke, a.k.a. Prince William, told reporters that they hadn’t yet chosen a name — George was a favorite name for the new heir among Britain’s bookmakers. George was the name of Queen Elizabeth II’s father and William’s great-grandfather, King George VI, and a name that dates back to the inception of the current royal family’s Hanoverian dynasty in the early 18th century with George I, a German import. If the new Prince ascends the throne, he will be King George VII.

Less clear is why the couple chose the second name Alexander, which was also a betting favorite with Britain’s leading bookies. (The names James, Henry, Richard and Arthur were also given good odds as potential names, but sadly for those who put their money down, they weren’t chosen.)

And finally, the name Louis could be, in part, a nod to Louis Mountbatten, 1st Earl Mountbatten of Burma, who was Prince William’s great-great-uncle, as well as the Queen’s second cousin once removed. Lord Mountbatten was assassinated in 1979, when the Irish Republican Army planted a bomb on his yacht.

The Duke and Duchess introduced Prince George to his great-grandmother the Queen earlier today, before leaving Kensington Palace in London and heading for Bucklebury, Berkshire, where the Middletons have a manor house.